Puppy Love
by The Big Black Panther
Summary: Beast Boy and Raven have always had a tumultuous relationship, and after a fight with a villainous cowboy, it seems like maybe things are finally getting started. Cute, perhaps a little OOC but featuring plenty of snark and one particularly bad pun! Containing just a hint of Robin/Starfire and a reference to Cyborg/Bumblebee. Disclaimer: I own nothing. Possibly not even myself.


**Puppy Love**

Silence reigned, with Robin standing quiet vigil over Starfire's bedside on the opposite end of the Tower and Cyborg down in the basement, working on his latest project (a tank). Raven would have relished the silence, had she been attempting to meditate, but it seemed jarring at that moment. She stood before Beast Boy's door, where she should have been hearing videogames or movies or laughter, even growling or barking as he made faces at himself in the mirror.

She raised her hand- dropped it. Knocked softly and called out his name. She expected no answer, and got none. She came after a fight with Jack Cobra, a gunslinging criminal mastermind with a red right hand that could smite his enemies. The cowboy had gathered a small army of henchmen and holed up in a group of caves bordering and intertwined with a canyon in southern California. The story of how the Titans- now Titans West rather than the Teen Titans, with four out of five of them no longer teens- got involved with a fight so far from home was too long and complicated for explanation, but the fact of the matter was that they had. During the fight, Robin had sent Beast Boy and Starfire on a reconnaissance mission of sorts.

After Cobra's capture, Cyborg had taken him to the police as Robin and Raven had searched for their missing teammates. They'd found Star, unconscious and covered in blood, at the bottom of the canyon, with Beast Boy in dog form just recently risen from his own spell of unconsciousness. Robin had flipped out on Beast Boy, blaming him for Star's wounds- and admittedly, with bites on one of her forearms and Beast Boy refusing to shift back to human, it looked like at least a few of them might have been from him. He'd skulked back to his room, still four-legged and furry, without even checking to see if Starfire was going to be okay.

So Raven hadn't expected him to answer. She pushed open the door slowly, calling out his name again. She had to let him know Starfire was going to be fine- she had a concussion, perhaps a few minor scars, but nothing more. The majority of the blood found on her appeared to have come from the henchmen she'd fought. Robin repented for his harsh words, but of course his pride made it to difficult for him to come and admit it himself. So Raven would go, and tell him, and Beast Boy would understand because that was the way of Robin, and they all knew that.

His room was so much neater than it used to be, she noted, seeing the laundry piled in one corner rather than spread across the floor and a lack of empty pizza boxes. Other things had changed, too; the bunk beds had been replaced by one single bed on the left and a dog bed tucked into the far right corner. She wasn't sure when that change had occurred, maybe a year ago, maybe a month, but something about it made her smile. Especially since he, and his big feet and furry ears, was curled up in it.

She sat next to him, waiting for him to acknowledge her before she spoke. Finally, she just accepted his eyes opening as all that she was getting. "I know you're upset. Robin was… out of line. He had no right speaking to you like that." She stroked his ear absently, staring across his room. "Starfire is going to be fine. She wasn't hurt very badly- most of the blood wasn't hers."

His dog-self blew out a sigh and shifted so that his head was in her lap, leaning into her hand. She fought back a smile, running a hand along his spine to smooth out his thick fur. He was playing her affections, she knew, using his adorable canine form to draw some pity out of her. How could Robin have been so callous to something so innocent, he was telling her to wonder. He begged for affection with large green eyes and a warm nose. It was absolutely working.

She continued to pet her canine companion, tilting back her head and closing her eyes. He needed to come out of his room, and see Star, and explain to all of them what had happened. Cyborg didn't expect her to wake up until the morning, and Robin's patience was unlikely to wait that long for the full story. But for now, she would just scratch his ears and let his wounded pride recover.

He moved- she opened her eyes. He'd shifted back, finally- although he appeared to have fallen asleep. Raven sighed, slipping her hand under his head to lift it gently and slide out. She couldn't blame him, really- she was exhausted herself, and based on his and Star's conditions when found, they'd gone through a pretty heaving beating themselves. She set his hands over his stomach and rose to her feet, debating whether or not to try and lift him carefully onto the bed.

Raven shrugged- there was no point; he slept here enough as it… was…

She brought her fingertips to her eyes, frowning at the dark substance she could barely make out there. A glance showed her the dark stain on the dog bed that his furry limbs had previously obscured. Raven fell to her knees next to his frighteningly still form, snatching a flashlight off of the floor- the light switch was too far away- and switched it on, seeing immediately a long, skinny gash across his stomach.

She screamed for Robin, somehow sensing he wasn't too far away- lurking, perhaps, to make a gruff apology after she finally talked Beast Boy into emerging- and settled her hands over his wound, muttering a spell she'd found in a tome the day before. Her hands glowed with her black magic and she began to knit the muscles back together, heart pounding in her chest.

Robin, uniform shed but for his mask, stood before her, arms crossed over his chest. "He's going to be fine. Whatever it was that cut him wasn't poisoned, and the cut was deep but clean-" she knew that, having healed it herself, but she let him keep talking- "so there's no problems there. He lost a lot of blood, but he's a fighter, and you already got the wound well on its way to healing. Cyborg predicts he'll wake up moderately soon, thanks to you."

Raven nodded, though she couldn't quite bring herself to believe he was going to be okay that easily. There had been so much blood- at least they knew where all the blood on Star had come from. Speaking of. "How's Starfire?"

"Surprisingly enough, awake. She's really groggy, though; she can't really remember what happened."

"We'll see if Beast Boy does when he wakes up," she sighed, clasping him on the shoulder in a gesture of gratitude. He nodded, stepping aside to clear her way. He knew she wanted to stay with him, the same way he wanted to stay with Star.

Cyborg left when she entered, winking lasciviously at her. She shot a tendril of magic to trip him once he crossed the threshold, scowling. She just wanted to keep an eye on him, make sure her spell had worked. Make sure he would be okay.

She flipped off the lights, unable to stand the sight of his green skin washed out to gray, and crossed her legs. She floated in midair, attempting to meditate- but found herself only able to imagine the rhythmic beeping of the machine in the corner shutting off. She hit the floor with a bump, concentration broken by the terror within her chest, and rose to her feet with a wince. Pacing was the only option she saw left, and she took to it with vigor.

Two hours later, with tired legs, she cleaned the dog bed with a spell (though she already had once Cyborg had taken over Beast Boy's care). She folded the clean laundry in the basket in his closet, rolling her eyes at his lazy housekeeping. She returned to pacing.

She finally sat down sometime in the night, promising herself she'd stay awake and continue her vigil; she just had to rest her legs. Raven was asleep in moments, curling up in the middle of the dog bed, cloak pulled about her like a blanket. Nightmares haunted her restless sleep at first, but over time exhaustion lulled her into a simple stupor.

Thin arms, full of a strength they shouldn't have had, slid around her, lifting her up. She stirred, groggily, the profile of a green face swimming into view. "Beast Boy, when did you…"

"Just now. I'm moving you to the bed, you should go back to sleep." His voice was quiet, but firm and reassuring, and she accepted his advice without complaint.

Raven woke with the sun, rolling over within her warm cocoon of blankets. There was no moment of confusion regarding her surroundings; even without opening her eyes she knew she wasn't in her room. Her room smelled of incense and old parchment, and there was light falling in through one window- this room was still dark, and smelled earthy but clean. And a little like dog.

She slipped out from under the covers, padding lightly across the floor in an attempt not to wake Beast Boy up. She couldn't help but glance over at the dog bed in the corner, wincing at the thought that she'd let him sleep there, injured as he was.

She barely even noted his absence until she was nearly to the kitchen- her worries were assuaged nearly as soon as they entered her mind, for she turned the corner to find him scarfing down tofu leftovers in front of an open fridge, too hungry to waste time by closing it. Typical.

A dozen comments flashed through her mind- an admonishment for his treatment of the fridge, a snide comment regarding the disgustingness of tofu, a comment on his shirtlessness. She settled for just sitting at the island, looking at him with her best stare of judgment.

He offered her a grin and extended the container. "Tofu?"

"I'll starve." Raven fought back a smile, refusing to show emotion so early in the morning. He sat across from her, fridge finally closed, and continued to wolf down his breakfast. She studied him, not caring if she was being overt, because she was just concerned for his health.

He, the youngest of the Titans and the last of them to be a teen, would be turning twenty in just a few months, nearly a year behind her and Robin. He'd grown up so much since she'd first met, both physically and psychologically. Where once he'd had muscles defined more by his inability to put on weight, he was now wiry and lean, rather than skinny. Where once he'd been the shortest of the group, he was now just barely an inch taller than she. And while he was still goofy and imaginative and obsessed with videogames, he'd discovered his serious side.

"Like what you see?" he winked, giving her a toothy grin. He laughed, green eyes lighting up as she rolled her eyes.

"Let me take a look under the bandage," she ordered, motioning for him to get onto the counter. He darted to the sink first, to drop the now-empty container into it, and then leapt nimbly onto the island, folding his legs beneath him.

"Would you be careful to not rip it open?" she snapped, unwrapping the bandage carefully. "I spent a lot of energy healing you."

"I'm very sorry," Beast Boy replied, sounding entirely sincere and humble. She glanced up, not quite trusting that he wasn't being sarcastic, and caught a toothy grin disappearing from his face. Her eyes narrowed.

She studied the long, pale gray scar, feeling a surge of self-satisfaction for the success of her healing spell. "It's healing beautifully," she declared, running a finger lightly along it. "Now, if you could just explain how you got it, then I could stop worrying about you."

"Ah." Beast Boy leaned back on his hands, shrugging. "It's not like I was keeping it secret. I was a dog; I couldn't talk."

"Well, you can now." She slipped onto the counter next to him, shoulder brushing his ever so slightly.

His green eyes glanced down to the point of contact, and he swallowed hard. "Yeah. Ah, so Robin sent me and Star after that scientist guy who was Cobra's right hand man, right? We chased him into the caves, fighting occasional rogue groups of henchmen, and before we knew it- bam! He sprung a trap, diving down a side passage right after a turn then hiding it with an illusion so we never saw it. He also made it look like we weren't headed down a dead end, so once we passed his hiding spot he came out with this huge gun thing and five vaqueros. They apparently had run out of bullets and had been trying to sneak away, or something, because even though they had the drop on us they didn't shoot, just smacked me with the butt of a pistol. Star was a few steps ahead, so she heard the crack from my head and was able to turn and avoid the blow they tried to land on her. She took out the three of the cowboy dudes pretty easy, since they were practically unarmed, but I was dazed and of no use. The other two caught a hold of Star just long enough for the scientist dude to pull out this weird looking crossbow and hit her with a dart! Her eyes stopped glowing and she couldn't fight them off- obviously it had robbed her of her powers temporarily. So she was preoccupied-" Beast Boy leapt nimbly to his feet, getting caught up within his story telling and beginning to act it out- "and the scientist began to ready that gun thing! I finally got my wits about me, and I leapt forward to knock Star out of the way!"

He jumped across to the other counter, pretending to push an imaginary alien. "The gun fired off some kind of percussive blast, and it caught the goon on the right, sending him slamming back against the wall! It got all these hairline cracks, showing us glimpses of sun. Well, I was sprawled on top of the other goon, and he whipped out a knife- I guess that was when I got this." He motioned to the scar. "I knocked him out with one of those pressure points that Robin was showing us the other day, and Star helped me to my feet! Only the scientist was left, but we were cornered and Starfire couldn't use her starbolts! So I shifted-" suddenly he was a dog, growling and pointing, and then he shifted back- "and tried to look intimidating. Probably I could have chosen something better, but I was still dazed! So, whatever." He grinned charmingly, unabashed to admit his faults. "I thought his gun was going to take longer to load, but as I leapt at him he fired it again! I was only knocked back a little, catching it at the edge, but Star was thrown back against the wall the same way that goon had been- but this time it broke! I knew she couldn't fly, so I leapt after her- he hit me with a dart as I leapt, so I couldn't shift. I aimed for her arm guard, but… I guess I missed. Anyway, there was a little ledge on the other side, and when I caught Star's arm, I was dragged out onto it."

He shifted swiftly, on the far end of the counter, miming how he was nearly off the edge. He was sitting crosslegged on the edge when he shifted back. "I was preoccupied with the fact that, even though Star is as skinny as a rail, she weighs more than I do when I'm a dog, so I was sliding. I guess I assumed the scientist would just make a break for it since I was in no shape to catch him, but instead he decided to give me a shove first. Star and I both went over the edge. I pulled her close, hoping she'd wake up with the dart's effects having worn off, but she didn't." He pulled a face. "Instead she landed on me. I passed out after the impact- and maybe a little from blood loss, though I honestly hadn't really realized I was hurt. I woke up right before you guys got there, but I was still unable to shift back. I completely agreed with Robin- I hadn't meant to hurt Star, and I felt terrible to see the blood on her- but I couldn't exactly explain. I'd noticed the pain, at that point, but I just figured it was minor since I hadn't even really noticed getting wounded. I headed up to my room, intending to just sleep off the dart's effects and get it treated once I was human again, but while I was up there I realized it was a lot worse than I thought… That's where things start to get foggy… I was too weak to really move, and I was so glad to see you when you came in!"

Beast Boy leapt off the counter, standing in front of her. Raven wanted to roll her eyes and tell him she knew what had happened from here, but somehow she knew he'd tell her anyway and kept quiet. He set a hand on either side of her, leaning forward, a sparkle in his eye and a grin on his face. "You were being sweet. It was nice. Then the drugs finally cleared out of my system, and I had just enough energy to change back. Then I passed out. When I woke up, you were curled up and asleep in my dog bed- not snoring, by the way, in case you ever wondered- and I was starving. Blood loss, I presume. So, since I wouldn't be using my bed and I figured I was still too weak to carry you back to your room, I just scooped you up and put you there."

She'd thought he was done reenacting things, but he caught her off guard as he slipped an arm under her knees and another at her back, lifting her easily. "Just like this! And then you woke up, and in your sleep induced delirium you interpreted my dazzling good looks to mean I was a prince and you were my damsel in distress."

"Oh, yes," Raven intoned, resisting the urge to roll her eyes. "I just need to be saved constantly, and a little green man who smells like wet dog is just the man to do it."

"Touché. You realize you slept in my dog bed for half the night, yes? Your cloak is covered in green fur, by the way."

Raven wriggled, characteristic scowl on her face. "Would you put me down?"

"Hmm…" Beast Boy stared into the distance, face screwed up as he thought. "No. I don't think I will." He looked back at her, grinning. "You look so annoyed with me."

"I will murder you and cut out your entrails to feed to the first alligator I can find," she promised, raising one glowing black hand in a threatening manner.

"No, you won't," he said cheerfully, leaning back against the counter. "I'm your future love. Robin and Star are all lovey dovey, and Cyborg secretly pines for Bumblebee. So I'm your last option- so lucky you, getting left with the most attractive one."

"You are so…" she was going to finish with 'full of yourself,' but she lost her train of thought as his face seemed to be getting closer to hers. Her heart began to pound, eyes locked on his. Was he…?

But then he was setting her gently on the floor, stepping away quickly. Raven felt her mouth drop open slightly in shock, maybe slightly in rage- what was he doing, messing with her like that? He avoided her accusing glare, motioning slightly towards the door until she realized that his ears had picked up something when hers had not- Robin and Starfire, coming down for breakfast.

Her mouth snapped shut and she spun, turning to the refrigerator. She hadn't yet gotten her breakfast.

Starfire shrieked in excitement as she and Robin turned the corner, eyes lighting up as she saw Beast Boy. "Robin has been telling me of your wounds. You are fine?"

"And full of tofu," Raven muttered, leaning over to dig an apple out of the fridge.

Beast Boy laughed, catching Starfire as she launched herself at him in a hug. "The only pain I feel is for you. Is your arm okay? I will happily tear mine off if you need it replaced."

"The replacement of my limbs is not necessary," she assured him, dropping her feet back to the floor and stepping back. "My memory returned during the night, and I have assured Robin-"

"-that you were only saving her," the black haired leader cut in, extending a hand towards his friend. "I didn't mean to snap at you, especially considering everything you were going through at the time. I just freaked out when I saw all the blood on Star."

Beast Boy accepted the handshake- an oddly formal gesture for two such old friends, Raven mused- and shrugged. "Turns out you were yelling at the one the blood belonged to, huh?"

Robin laughed, nodding. "Yeah. Sorry."

Beast Boy glanced over at Raven, standing quietly in the corner and studying the scene with unreadable purple eyes, and cleared his throat awkwardly as he turned back to Robin and Starfire. "I need to go put a shirt on? I'll, uh, be doing that."

Raven resented the guilt in his voice, eyes narrowing as she watched him leave, forgotten apple crushed within one glowing black fist.

Robin noted the exchange, his own eyes narrowing as he considered the possibility that Beast Boy was finally making his move. Starfire distracted him, draping one long arm across his shoulders as she inquired as to his breakfast preferences. He offered her a tender smile and the opportunity to make whatever _Earth_ food she wanted to for breakfast.

A dark sky, lit only by distant stars, stretching above and around a flat stone island- Raven hovered inches above it. Legs crossed, mouth murmuring "Azarath Metrion Zinthos" over and over. Perfect meditation, unbroken by noise and surrounded by emptiness. Peace. Quiet.

"RAVEN!"

Her eyes snapped open and her legs unfolded, eyes flashing dangerously as she spun to face a grinning Cyborg.

"Me and BB are heading out for pizza! You comin' with?" he beamed, waving the keys to the T-Car. "I'm buyin'."

"I'm stayin'," she fired back, mimicking his voice rather ruthlessly, uncharacteristically snide with her good friend. "Get out of my room."

"Jeez, forgive a guy for just tryin' to buy ya pizza," Cyborg complained, throwing his hands in the air in exasperation as he stalked out.

Raven winced, knowing she'd have to apologize at some point. She wasn't mad at Cyborg; it wasn't his fault Beast Boy hadn't spoken a word to her since he'd almost kissed her two days before. She shouldn't care at all, really; for one thing, she had better control of her emotions than that, and for another she was twenty now! She was no giggling teenager (not that she ever had been), and she shouldn't be so torn up over a boy.

Especially not Beast Boy.

Clenching her teeth, Raven closed her eyes and returned to meditating, beginning to slowly erase the room around her, to be later replaced by her quiet island of stone. "Azarath metrion zinthos," she intoned, settling the backs of her hands on top of her thighs. "Azarath metrion-"

"Oi!" Beast Boy stormed into her bedroom, his normally happy face set in a scowl. "What's with you, telling off Cyborg for just inviting you to come with us to lunch? Why are you always-"

"Attempting to meditate and keep my powers under control?" Raven snapped, not even gracing him with her gaze, instead keeping her eyes straight ahead, her back to the door.

"You're just so infernally-"

"Well, I am the daughter of a demon."

"You can't even accept-"

"Payment in exchange for my services? I thought we all did this on a purely volunteer basis."

"Raven-"

"That is my name, yes."

"RAVEN!"

"What?" she snapped, finally returning to the ground and spinning to face him. "What do you want me to say? Do you want me to apologize to Cyborg? I'd planned on it, thanks; I was just going to wait for you two to get back."

"No! Well, yes, but I want to know why you snapped at him, Raven, he was just being nice! You've been skulking for days, we haven't seen you since-"

"I've been skulking?!" Raven growled, clenched fists beginning to glow. "I've been going about my day like normal! Early breakfast, meditation, quiet lunch, reading, etcetera, etcetera! I've seen everyone but you!" As her voice rose, so the black power spread up her arms, across her body, and through the room. Beast Boy stepped back, closing the door with a soft click and leaning his back against it, watching her with something just short of fear. Somehow he knew she needed to do this, needed to scream at him. He just didn't necessarily want to share her anger with the rest of the Tower.

The room turned cold, her power painting the whole room black. "I saved you! I worried about you! I slept in your stupid dog bed! And you- that morning, you were shirtless and charming and you swept me up and nearly kissed me and then you _left_." She spat the last word, chest heaving with emotion. Beast Boy silently stepped toward her, listening carefully to her every complaint. "You left, and you never came back, and even worse you _regretted_ ever coming near me. It was in your voice and in your eyes and you've been avoiding me ever since. Now you have the gall to claim-"

"That I only regretted the fact that Robin and Star interrupted?" he murmured, taking another step forward. He closed the distance now, wrapping his arms slowly about her. "Calm down, Raven… Calm down…"

He held her tightly as she let out a soundless scream, caught up in the fury and the expression of her powers, a wind whipping up within her room. Books circled them, battering him, but she herself didn't fight his embrace, and he refused to move. Steadily, the cyclone slowed, leaving them standing in the room. Her knees gave out, and he carefully knelt alongside her, still holding her close.

"Next time I'll call, alright?" he teased, releasing her with one hand to brush back the cowl of her cloak. "We'll awkwardly exchange small talk, then set a date for Friday. I'll show up in my zoot suit, you'll wear your poodle skirt, and we'll dance our troubles away at the sock hop."

"Oh, shut up," Raven muttered, rolling her eyes and disentangling herself from his arms.

Beast Boy lounged back, smirking over at her. "So, do you know what you call a raven who committed a justifiable murder? A bird with caws."

Raven stared at him with a blank face. "That was terrible."

"It was funny anyway."

"It wasn't."

"But I'm funny."

"You're not."

"I'm charming."

"You-" Raven cut off, scowling, knowing she'd blurted that fact during her earlier tirade. There was no way to deny it. "Your obsession with yourself cancels it out."

"Obsession? Because I make the occasional reference to my irresistible looks? That's not an obsession, dear Raven, that is propaganda. If I make myself sound irresistible, I will become irresistible." He stood, extending a hand to pull her to her feet- and into him, as he looked at her with a much more serious look on his face. "I really am sorry, Raven. I thought you wanted me to leave you alone when you closed yourself in your room."

"I assumed you were avoiding me when you didn't come."

"And then Robin got all protective and older brother-ish, and Cy made an inappropriate joke, and Star got confused, and Robin turned red trying to explain it, and the whole thing just… it seemed like maybe it would be easier if you just avoided me and we eventually moved on, but then Cy wanted to invite you to lunch and I couldn't help but want you to come and then you pissed him off and that pissed me off and now I'm here and-"

Raven pressed her lips against his, cutting him off before he suffocated from trying to speak without pausing. "Could you just shut up once in a while?" she murmured, pulling back.

Beast Boy grinned at her, lopsided canines somehow making it even more endearing. "Your wish is my-"

Robin cleared his throat, standing in the doorway. "Are we going to go to lunch or not?"

The smile slid from Beast Boy's face to be replaced by a somewhat mortified expression- but Raven simply replied, "Not."

A tendril of black power closed the door in Robin's face.


End file.
